The following characteristics are necessary for borosilicate glass for a pharmaceutical container such as a vial or an ampule.
(a) A component of an aqueous-based medicament present in the container and a glass component do not react with each other.
(b) Chemical durability and hydrolytic resistance are high so as not to contaminate an aqueous-based medicament present in the container, and is maintained even after various thermal treatments at the time of converting process.
(c) A linear thermal expansion is low such that breakage due to thermal shock does not occur in a production process of a glass tube and during converting process into a vial, an ampule and the like.
(d) A quantity of heat at the time of converting process into a vial, an ampule and the like can be decreased so that an inner surface of a container is not deteriorated due to an evaporant from glass, after the converting process.
A standard borosilicate glass for a pharmaceutical container satisfying these required characteristics includes SiO2, B2O3, Al2O3, Na2O, K2O, CaO, BaO, and a small amount of a fining agent, as constituent components.